Sunday, March 22, 2009

1. One bowl, one spoon, your hands. Yep, I love anything that requires less than three utensils. What can I say, I'm a wuss when it comes to washing the dishes!2. Anyone can do it. Scones were probably my first ever baking project (that turned out successfully - we won't talk about what came before that, it ain't pretty). Maybe that's why I have a soft spot for them.3. Quick and freezable. Can I tell you, it takes me about 3 minutes to put scones together, and I can make a big batch and freeze half for unexpected company. Now that's what I call a totally awesome recipe!4. Hello, delicious! Strawberry, blueberry, raisin, buttermilk, cheddar, herb, and just plain, they are all winners to me. My name is Irene and I'm a scone-aholic.

Because you guys are really important to me, I suffered on your behalf and tried out about six different scone recipes. There were cream scones from Dorie Greenspan's Baking and buttermilk currant scones from Tartine. There were non-traditional scones with eggs and scones so dry I had to practically drown them in Devonshire cream and lemon curd (it was terrible, I'm still scarred). However, one emerged victorious, and it was, strangely, not from a cookbook or an award-winning chef, but one that was hidden in a dark corner of my recipe binder, given to me years ago by a friend. The paper, bent into quarters from being tucked into the pocket of my jeans, just said: "Strawberry scones," followed by a few lines of instruction. I was intrigued. I was curious. And after I made them, I was sold. This is hands down the best scone I have ever tasted, anywhere.

Tender, moist (even on the second day!) and delicately sweet, studded with ruby red strawberries and sparkling with a simple topping of vanilla sugar, oh, these made me so happy! I used buttermilk, which gave them a nice tang to contrast with the sweetness of the strawberries, but I would love a re-match with blueberries and cream or cherries with a sprinkling of cornmeal. There are six left in the freezer now. Do you think I can count myself as "unexpected company"?

If using larger fruit, cut into bite-sized pieces. Sprinkle fruit with 1/2 tablespoon sugar; set aside. Be sure to make the pieces small, or they tend to fall out of the dough. They'll still be plenty prominent in your finished scones.

Combine remaining sugar with flour, baking powder and salt. Add butter, using a pastry cutter or 2 knives to cut in butter (you may want to use your fingers to be sure butter is evenly mixed into flour). Stir in fruit; then add cream/half-and-half/buttermilk all at once. Use spatula to gently stir dough until it holds together.

Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead a few times to incorporate dry ingredients. Be gentle so you don't break up the berries and don't overwork the dough. Sprinkle dough with flour if it gets sticky.

Press (pat) the dough into a circle 3/4 inch thick. If any berries peek out, push them into dough. Cut circle into 6-8 wedges, then transfer wedges to the cookie sheet, leaving at least 1/2 inch of space between them. Bake 15 minutes.

Sprinkle with sugar and bake 5-10 more minutes or until the tops are beginning to brown and spring back when you push them (this took another 15-20 minutes in my oven, but keep a careful watch and check every 5 minutes - you do not want dry scones!). (The sprinkling of sugar over the top for the last few minutes of baking creates a simple, sparkly topping.)

I love when you find an old recipe and it makes for the best treat--like these scones. They look so delicious. Plus, I'm on a strawberry kick right now, so they're perfect for me. Man, I wish I could reach through my computer and grab one--they look just delicious!

I've never made scones. Are they really that easy? Don't get me wrong I like scones and have seen recipes, looked them over but they didn't strike me as being that easy. I think I'm convinced that I need to make my own though I seriously doubt any will be going into the freezer! :-) I'll let you know how it goes...wish me luck! ~ingrid

Ingrid, they really are that easy! Especially these, they are a snap to make. You should try it! I made a double batch and only half went into the freezer... :) I'm terrible around scones. Well, around many desserts, really!

I saw these this morning (about 5 am) and ran to the kitchen and made these!!! The library staff is loving them! Thanks for the great inspiration and recipe! :) My photos aren't nearly as beautiful as yours! Will post soon :)

Oh how I love waking up to an inspiring post.I LOVE SCONES, have always been too terrified to make them. I will MAKE THESE, and I promise to post them linking back to you !!YIPPEE !! CAN'T WAIT.THANKS SOOOOOOOOO MUCH FOR SHARING.......

Oh, Irene ... Watching this page load up on my screen is a real pleasant experience. As a Bangkokian (where it's 90+ degrees F in the *winter*) would say, it's like stepping into a place with air-conditioning at full blast after having walked five blocks in the sun.

Reason number one rocks. I think the task of washing the dishes takes away the joy of cooking! In fact, I design my life and my cooking around that philosophy. :)

Thank you :) I only use natural light, nothing else. Sometimes, I use a white board to reflect light, but not in these photos. For the flowers, I pumped up the contrast by a few points and over-exposed them a little. It was about 8-9am, the light was gorgeous. I could not stop shooting them; I spread them on the floor and shot them for 45 min. Boy, I was cramped! But happy. :)

I have been reading your blog for some time now, and I just have to tell you how much I enjoy it. Your photos are so wonderful -- the roses and scones in this entry are a perfect match! (I tried out the recipe this evening, and boy are they delicious!)~Natalie

oh my. I made these last night as some late night baking therapy and they seriously made my mood. They were delicious straight out of the oven, and the next day. And my parents ate them all in one day. I have to go make more for myself now. :D

I happened to stumble upon these when stumbling, saw how delicious they look, and how easy to make they were and gave them a try! They just came out of the oven... do I have to wait until they cool down first? ):

Lesley, this makes 6 large scones or 12 mini scones. If you are going to make minis, I would divide the dough in half and pat into 2 circles instead of 1 big one, and then cut each circle into 6 pieces. I recommend making the large ones, though, because they are just so good! If you need more than 6 scones, I would make the dough a few nights before (each batch of 6 separately), cut the scones, freeze them for an hour or so on a cookie sheet, and then store in a large freezer bag. When you are ready to bake, just take them out - no need to defrost - and add a few minutes to the baking time (I would also bake one a few nights before the shower just so you know exactly how long your oven will take to bake these scones - mine took about 15 minutes longer than the original recipe).

I made these this morning and my dough was just so sticky! I had to add quite a bit of flour and even then I couldn't get mine to form a nice round loaf like yours. I ended up just spooning the dough and making "rustic" scones. Any tips for next time?

It sounds like because of the summer heat, the liquid may have been too much or maybe the butter melted too quickly. Maybe next time make sure the butter is only very slightly softened, so on the colder side, and make sure to keep all your ingredients very cold before combining. Also, you might want to start with 1/2 cup of cream/buttermilk and add the other 1/4 as needed (the dough should be moistened and pretty uniform - not as dry as for a pie/tart crust, but not so wet that it's sticky).

Well, I had to try these. But I only had tart cherries from Door County, Wisconsin, and I also wanted to keep them non-dairy.

I learned to lower the oven temp if using the convection feature ;) and that I shouldn't be afraid to leave them in a litle longer at that lower temperature in order to keep them from being a bit underdone (read: soft). Underdone though, they were still exceptional and crusty on the outside while soft on the inside. Yum!

I will do these again. First since I have lots of cherries left, and second, since I also have some yummy Barry Callebaut chocolate to pair with them.

Dovid! Please share how you kept the scones non-dairy! I am cooking for some friends soon who are allergic to dairy and I would love to be able to surprise them with blueberry scones for dessert. Otherwise, yes, these do take a little longer to get done than the recipe says, so I usually leave them until they are really nice and brown on top (and they will still be soft inside). The Callebaut chocolate sounds so delicious with the scones!

Thanks so much it's nearing the end of a bumper strawberry season here on the Sunshine Coast of Australia and I just got given a huge bowl of strawberries. This was the first receipe I tried and they are great, really simple to make but so much nicer then plain scones. ...now for something else to use up a few!

Oh, I'm so glad you liked them! I miss strawberries! If you want to use up a few more and you want to make a cake, I highly recommend the Strawberry Bavarian I made for Mother's Day here - it was seriously delicious and has strawberries inside the cake as well as strawberry puree to moisten the layers - wow. You could even fold some pureed strawberries into the Bavarian cream itself to intensify the strawberry flavor! Check out this link for the recipe: http://confessionsoftart.blogspot.com/2009/05/strawberry-bavarian-cake-and-trifle.html

Thanks, I am now sending this link to my sister in the UK as I told my mum about the scones who told my sister, who called me to find out about this recipe... it has definately gone global! Thanks again and as soon as I have some more strawberries I will try the cake!

Thank you so much! I volunteered to make scones for a large tea party. I've never even attempted them before and was a little concerned as I'm not good at baking. I made a trial batch last night from your directions and they were easy and fantastic! Fool proof!

My teenage daughter found your recipe online this morning and made your delicious strawberry scones as my Mother's Day present. These were the BEST scones I have ever eaten!! Your story behind the recipe and beautiful pictures are simply amazing. We have started a new tradition and will be enjoying strawberry scones every Mother's Day from now on!

I made these last night, and they are so delicious! I went strawberry picking on Sunday and this was a great use for them. I didn't have any cream or buttermilk on hand, and I wanted to use something that had fat (skim milk is all I usually have), so I used coconut milk (I always have cans of that). I don't think it added any noticeable coconut flavor, but the texture was great. Thanks for the great recipe!

thanks for the recipe; i modified the recipe slightly by replacing buttermilk with yogurt and eliminating the strawberries altogether - would have loved to have some in but strawberries come at a premium price in tropical countries. the texture came out slightly sticky, but i'm pretty sure it's got something to do with the fact that i used yogurt instead. i still loved it very much (and it goes perfect with honey) because it isn't easy to come by an eggless scone recipe (mother's a lactovegan). will have to try it with cream or buttermilk next time ;)

Meei - if you use yogurt again, try baking them a little longer. Cream or buttermilk has worked really well for me and someone up in the comments thread said that they used milk and it was also good. Baking times will vary with all these, so just check with a toothpick until they are done baking.

Hi! I just made these for our Saturday morning lazy breakfast. YUM! I did have to add a LOT more flour, though! About 1/4-1/2 cup while I was kneading because it just wasn't forming at all, just getting more and more stuck to my hands! :P But after I added the flour, they worked perfectly. I only had whole milk, so I used that, but it turned out well. (Maybe that's why I had to add more flour? Who knows?) They were AWESOME. We had these with some scrambled eggs, cantaloupe, and a cup of great coffee and marveled at the fact that we weren't spending upwards of $12 each for the breakfast at one of our local dives. Thanks so much for this recipe!

these scones are amazing, and amazingly easy! i replaced 1 c. of flour with whole wheat flour, and they are delicious still. i have made these scones with strawberries, strawberries and bananas, and bananas and chocolate chips. Yum! Thanks so much for the inspiration!

I just made the strawberry scones. So I set off the alarm with the first batch but the second one turned out gorgeously mouth watering according to my husband:) love the pictures and the recipes. Will be coming back for more....

Such great scones! The yellow roses are beautiful too. So glad I came by from the Conghale Cottage!I totally love making and eating scones. Thanks for sharing this great recipe, can't wait to try them!FABBY

Love how this post comes back to life and people have left comments each strawberry season since you shared. I also love the way my kitchen smells right now as the scones (my first attempt) are cooling. Also love your blog, and have you bookmarked!

I made these thins morning and added some diced crystallized ginger to the strawberries. Next time, I am going to plan ahead and make some rosemary sugar (fresh rosemary, sitting in some chunky sugar for a week should do it) to sprinkle on top.

The dough was very wet and sticky, and I think next time I might just drop them on the sheet, but they were delicious!

Scone dough is very dependent on outside heat/humidity because, as I understand it - and anyone feel free to correct me - that affects the flour's absorption of the liquid. So if the dough is too dry, add a bit more cream/buttermilk and if the dough is too wet, add a bit more flour. It shouldn't be so wet as to stick to your hands but not so dry as to fall apart when you touch it or try to cut it.

Wow this recipe is wonderful! I have made three separate batches (testing for a wedding): blueberry (fresh & dried) and semi-sweet chocolate chip. I love the recipe and plan on doing these as well as a savory (cheddar & herb) for the wedding. Thank you for sharing! =p I added some lemon zest to my blueberry scones and they were delicious! After three batches I feel much more comfortable with the recipe and am really excited to make them in the future! =) Cannot wait to try it with strawberries!

I've just made them myself, and I had the same problem as the previous commenter--I had to add more than a cup of flour to help them get out of the sticky stage! Next time I think I'll add the liquid very slowly and see what happens!

I just finished making these, and they're great! My oven usually takes a bit longer than the recommended bake time, so I started at intervals of 5 minutes like suggested. At 15 minutes I noticed that the bottom edges were turning brown so I pulled them out- glad I did! Perfect timing!

I did not have any half/half or butter milk or cream, so I took a chance with the 2% milk in my fridge. Can't say that I can tell a difference from previous scones I've eaten!

Hello! I just found this recipe and gave it a shot using some fresh strawberries that I had frozen. It worked out great. Though it helps to try to remove excess water after defrosting as best you can. I tend to give a few twists to the recipes I find and wanted to share what I did with you! I used coconut oil for the fat, added lemon zest, and used 1% milk. Kind of turning a tropical drink into a scone! Lastly, I grated some dark chocolate on the top. Naturally, with the frozen strawberries being extra juicy, I did have to add more than a couple tablespoons of flour when kneading. And I just loved the coconut aroma. All in all, it really came out great. I'll definitely do this again -- thank you!

@Nura you do not need to refrigerate them after making them, just pop them in an air tight container loosely separated in layers by parchment paper. They're good for a few days easily!

@OP I have been making these since you posted the recipe, and a wild variety of interpretations thereof, my favorite is +1c of oats and 1/4c maple syrup with cranberries (dried) vs strawberries. Enough flour to make them stop being tacky crazy balls, and they're amazing. Occasionally I'll also put on a simple glaze from maple too. Oh, and I always double up on the vanilla. Always.

Using this recipe they were too wet and needed so much more flour to cut the wedges and the dough was red. When they baked they barely rose and tasted like nothing and have a weird texture. I would've much rather enjoyed fresh strawberries with my own shortcakes.

I love this recipe! The original scones are wonderful, but I've also modified the recipe to include items like wheat bran, wheat flour, corn flour, chives, broccoli, cheese, zucchini, chocolate chips and whatever else I have around the kitchen. They always turn out perfect!

Made these awesome scones yesterday. For someone who doesn't like usual dry scones these truly were amazing esp since i had never made scones before. I also used heavy cream instead of buttermilk. Plus they were even yummy this morning, after nuked in the microwave for 20 secs... yum!

I had terrible trouble with this recipe. The dough was so wet, I had to add more than a cup of flour to get the dough to come together. My strawberries were very juicy so I can only guess this was my problem.

Yes, the juicy strawberries were probably the culprit. Next time, you can mix them with a little sugar and leave to masticate for half an hour and then drain the juices. Or just use firmer strawberries. :) Sorry you had trouble with the recipe, it's usually fairly forgiving.

Just made these and they were awesome! I love the simplicity of the recipe-if it's too moist add a little flour. Mine was a bit dry and wouldn't hold so I just added a touch more cream and it was great! Thanks for sharing the recipe.

I made a vegan version of your recipe, using almond milk + vinegar instead of the buttermilk and I used a vegan margarine. They turned out great! I posted the recipe on my blog and linked back to your page.